YEREVAN (ArmRadio)–Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian met on Wednesday with the newly appointed Russian Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group mediating the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Sarkisian congratulated Igor Popov on his appointment and expressed hope the Russian envoy would make an important contribution to the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process The diplomat will be replacing Yuri Merzlyakov, who, sources indicate, may be appointed to head the Russian embassy in Estonia.
The meeting also included a discussion between the two about the latest developments in the Karabakh negotiations.
In related news, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Kazakhk Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabayev, spoke over the telephone the same day with Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian and his counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov. Saudabayev told the two during the conference call that he was keen on finding a solution to the conflict and was ready to take on a personal role in the negotiations to that end.
